Reading Will Durant's History of European Civilization from Wycliff to Calvin 1300-1564 will be an illuminating experience for readers unacquainted with factual descriptions of life during those years. For having views on religion or government contrary to time or country thousands died slow deaths tied to a stake surrounded by a pile of burning wood.

Those who committed less serious crimes against the church or state received the kinder, quicker death of one strong blow of a sword removing their head. Even belonging to royalty was no insurance for living to an old age. With the death of a ruling king or queen, only one member of the family could inherit the throne. Therefore it was not unusual for the quick murder of potential heirs who commonly were family members. The discovery of America by Christopher Columbus is commonly taught as a wonderful event in world history. How many know that of the three ships, the Nina, Pinta, and Santa Maria, only two returned, the largest, the Santa Maria having been destroyed in a storm. The harrowing return trip in two tiny, badly over-crowded open ships, stands as one of the miracles of ocean travel. In our observation of Columbus Day do we know the initial good will of the natives was quickly lost. On a later trip Columbus observed "The Europeans had roamed the island robbing the natives of gold and women; they had established a tropical paradise with five women to each man; they had quarreled and murdered one another, and nearly all the rest had been killed by the outraged Indians.

Later on in the Spanish conquest of Yucatan, the Aztec Empire and the socialistic civilization of the Incas Durant observes the conquered people were more civilized but not equal to the guns of the conquerors. Many knowledgeable insights such as these explain why Durant continues to hold the readers' attention throughout his lengthy books. It is understandable that reading nine hundred page books is anything but common practice in current times. Our average families find both husband and wife spending more hours at work with less time in the home. Nevertheless, for those who never got beyond grade school or high school Will Durant's historical books will build a factually informed education about the nature of government and religion in previous centuries preparing us for beginning the challenges of the 21st century. If you feel your mind being diminished by television's long commercials and the mere bits and bytes of news, start reading Will Durant's fascinating accounts of what was really going on inside the twists and turns of life in our European fatherland. You will soon find yourself building a more accurate picture of the countries from which we have come from and what our special gifts to the human race have been. This education will heighten your competence and self esteem as we wrestle with the changes within the United States and the world in the 21st century.